Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

They posed as the children's parents, using drugs to keep the abducted children asleep for extended periods to prevent them from crying and attracting attention. Then, taking advantage of the complex, mobile, and relatively lax security environment of long-distance trains, they transported the children to remote areas far from their hometowns for sale and to make huge profits.

In this era of scarcity, information isolation, and imperfect population management, such evil is like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows, and the tragedies it causes are often irreversible.

Wei Chen forced himself to calm down, as if facing cunning prey. Anger wouldn't solve the problem; it might even alert the traffickers. Human traffickers are often ruthless and desperate criminals, acting cautiously and likely carrying weapons.

The train carriages are currently crowded and the aisles are narrow. If they sense something is wrong, they might become desperate and take children hostage, or pull out weapons to create chaos and injure innocent passengers. We must plan carefully before acting.

He maintained his closed-eye, feigned-sleep posture, his breathing steady, as if he were just an ordinary traveler exhausted from a long journey. But all his senses and mental energy were on high alert, like the most sophisticated radar, firmly locked onto the opposite berth area. He began patiently and discreetly gathering more information.

The train continued its clattering across the twilight-shrouded land, its rhythmic clatter serving as perfect cover. The couple seemed more wary because of the old woman's earlier question; for a while, they remained silent, only occasionally exchanging tense glances. The man took two dry, hard cornbread buns from his black faux-leather bag, handing one to the woman. They silently ate them, consuming only the cold water poured from the kettle, their mouths empty.

The middle-aged man opposite Wei Chen finished his cornbread, yawned, put away his lunchbox, and leaned back in his chair to doze off. The old teacher next to him also put down his newspaper, rubbed his sore eyes, took out a chipped military water bottle from his cloth bag, and slowly drank some water.

The carriage gradually quieted down, with only the monotonous sound of wheels hitting the rails and the occasional snores. The lights were dim, and most of the passengers were dozing off.

About half an hour later, it was completely dark, and only a few scattered lights could be seen flashing by in the distance. The fluorescent lights on the ceiling of the carriage emitted a pale light, illuminating the tired or sleeping faces. The couple seemed to have relaxed their vigilance a little, thinking that the crisis had passed.

The man leaned close to the woman's ear and whispered, almost in a breath, "...The next stop is Jining South, stop for ten minutes...After Jining, we'll be almost out of the border...When we get there, someone will meet us."

The woman responded in an equally low voice, trembling with barely perceptible anxiety: "...I still don't feel at ease...how long will the medicine...how long will it last? I felt like there was something wrong with that old woman's eyes just now..."

"Shut up!" The man's voice suddenly turned deep, carrying a suppressed rebuke, but he quickly lowered it even further. "What's the panic! Same as before, it's fine! I've calculated the dosage; he won't wake up before we reach Baotou. When we get there, someone will meet us, cash on delivery. This batch of 'goods' is of good quality, clean and white, it's a boy, so we can sell it for this much more..." He seemed to be gesturing a hand under the blanket.

"But...I'm always afraid..." The woman's unease deepened. "Afraid of nothing!" The man's voice carried a fierce allure and threat. "Think about the money! Think about the life of luxury you'll have! Keep a close eye on this brat, don't let him cause any trouble! Once we get there, we'll take the money, and then we'll run away..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was already obvious.

The last trace of doubt in Wei Chen's heart also disappeared. Although the conversation was brief and vague, the keywords "dosage", "reception", "payment and delivery", "this shipment", "good quality", "male baby"... were enough to piece together a clear picture of evil.

This is indeed a pair of experienced and ruthless human traffickers, and they have likely committed crimes more than once, with fixed routes for selling stolen goods and contact persons. They abduct children and transport them by long-distance trains, with their destinations likely being mining areas or remote pastoral areas in the Northwest where management is relatively lax and vehement checks on the origins of people are not strict.

Having ascertained their identities and intentions, Wei Chen began to observe their belongings and physical characteristics more closely. The old black handbag was bulging and placed at the woman's feet. The zipper was not fully zipped up, and one could vaguely see that besides clothing, there seemed to be a square-shaped object wrapped in oil paper inside.

Beneath the man's cotton-padded jacket at his waist, an unnatural, hard bulge emanated, likely concealing a short-bladed weapon like a dagger. Taking advantage of the woman's momentary turn as she pretended to wipe the child's sweat, Wei Chen's sharp eyes spotted a small section of white material, resembling medical tape or a specially made sealing strip, peeking out from the seam of her homespun bundle. Next to it was a small roll of thin, dark-colored hemp rope.

Sedatives, gagging cloths, ropes... the tools for the crime were complete. This man and woman were thoroughly cold-blooded human traffickers.

The chain of evidence was essentially complete in Wei Chen's mind. But he didn't act immediately. Catching human traffickers, especially those caught red-handed on trains, requires overwhelming evidence and the ability to deny or recant any possible excuses. At the same time, the absolute safety of the abducted children must be ensured, preventing any secondary harm during the arrest.

He noticed that the man appeared to be dozing, but his eyes occasionally darted around under his eyelids, and his ears seemed to twitch slightly, clearly maintaining a high level of alertness. This was a seasoned veteran, not someone to be trifled with.

Most of the passengers in the carriage were fast asleep, snoring loudly. This was precisely when human traffickers might lower their guard, but it could also be the time when they were preparing to do something.

Wei Chen saw the man quietly take a small paper packet from his bag and quickly stuff it into the inner pocket of his cotton-padded coat. The packet was small, but Wei Chen's spiritual power keenly detected a very faint fluctuation that shared the same origin as the lingering gloomy aura on the child.

It's a sleeping drug! They still have some on them, and they might use it at any time!

There was no time to wait. He had to contact the train police immediately. Wei Chen quietly opened his eyes, rubbed his temples, pretended to be woken by the urge to urinate, slowly stood up, stretched, and then walked along the crowded aisle towards the crew quarters and restrooms at one end of the carriage. His movements were natural and didn't attract the attention of the human traffickers.

As Wei Chen passed the crew room, the door was ajar, and light shone from inside. A female crew member, dressed in a railway uniform, around thirty years old, with a sharp face and eyes that showed signs of fatigue from a long day's work, was sorting through tickets. Wei Chen knocked on the door.

"Comrade, is there something you need?" The female flight attendant looked up with a smile on her face.

Wei Chen walked in, casually closing the door behind him to block out most of the noise from the carriage. His face showed just the right amount of seriousness and a hint of hesitation as he lowered his voice and said, "Officer, excuse me. There's something rather strange. I'm not sure if I should say it, maybe I'm just overthinking it, but something just doesn't feel right, and I wanted to bring it up with you."

Seeing his serious expression, which suggested he wasn't joking or being unreasonable, the female flight attendant put down the tickets in her hand and said solemnly, "Comrade, what's the situation? We will definitely take it seriously."

"I had seat number X, the one by the window. A short distance diagonally opposite me, there was a couple with a child." Wei Chen spoke calmly, but his description was extremely clear and accurate. "That child, from the time I boarded until now, about three or four hours, has been sleeping face-in, completely still. Some passengers asked, and the couple said the child was a heavy sleeper. But..."

He paused, his gaze sharpening. "I observed for a long time. The child's breathing was extremely weak, and his face was deathly pale. No matter how noisy or shaky the carriage was, or even if someone touched his seat, he didn't react at all, unlike someone sleeping normally. Moreover, the couple seemed extremely flustered, their eyes darting around, avoiding eye contact, and when asked about the child, they stammered and always subconsciously covered the child's face. I... I suspect the child may have been drugged, and that couple may not be the child's real parents."

The female flight attendant listened, her brow furrowing deeper and deeper. Having traveled this northwest route for years, she had witnessed all sorts of people and events, and was extremely vigilant. The details Wei Chen described—the child's prolonged, unusually lethargic sleep, the parents' furtive and secretive behavior—immediately sounded an alarm bell in her mind. This was too much like the characteristics of some criminals who abduct and transport children!

"You suspect... kidnapping?" The flight attendant didn't finish her sentence, but her tone had already become very serious.

"Very likely," Wei Chen said in a deep voice, adding to his credibility, "I am a purchasing agent from the Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill in Beijing. I am on a business trip. My name is Wei Chen, and this is my work ID." He took out a small booklet with a dark red cover, printed with the national emblem and the words "Work ID," and handed it to the flight attendant.

The female flight attendant took the work permit, carefully examined the photo, seal, and company information, nodded, and her expression became even more serious.

She returned the work permit to Wei Chen, her tone urgent and decisive: "Comrade Wei Chen, thank you! The situation you reported is very important! There's a train police officer on duty on this train; I'll contact him immediately! Go back to your seat now and continue observing, but don't alert them! Be careful! The train police officer will be here soon, and we'll discuss our strategy!"

"Okay." Wei Chen nodded; this was exactly the result he wanted. With the train police involved, leaving professional matters to professionals would ensure a successful arrest while also maximizing the child's safety.